he wouldn't trade them for the world
by transyga
Summary: Donald was going to tell them... eventually. They had a right to be angry at Scrooge, and a right to be angry at him. He just hadn't wanted them angry at their mother. He was angry enough for them.


Donald really didn't care what Beakley had to say about their situation, the boys had every right to be mad. Their family wouldn't be in this situation had it not been for Scrooge.

She had been right, that the boys shouldn't have accused their Uncle of not having done anything to help bring her back. Donald himself had seen the efforts of his Uncle, the problem was that it was too little too late.

Scrooge believed that he could do anything. He had years of experience facing the unknown. He had seen it all and made it through alright in the end.

He was Scrooge McDuck. He didn't need to worry about the risks.

When Scrooge had taken in the two of them and began taking them on adventures it wasn't as if Della wasn't already a carefree child ready to take on the world. She was, but she has still been a child who knew to question the risks. Uncle Scrooge quickly snuffed that out. So long as they were with him, they'd be safe: he would protect them.

The problem was, no matter how many times he and Della got into trouble or put at risk, so long as they were alive at the end Scrooge didn't need to have to worry. He never thought of the possible consequences until the danger was in their face. He could regret everything up until the moment they were safe again and then he'd simply forget that he had ever been worried at all. If he had been worried at all. See, if Scrooge McDuck could face the greatest dangers of the world on some thrill-seeking adventure, then why couldn't he make it through another?

Uncle Scrooge had a way of ignoring the dangers and risks so long as they made it through to the end; of course, he'd make it through the end, if he could make it through that he could make it through anything. You'd be wrong to doubt him.

Della thrived with Uncle Scrooge. When she had wanted to become a pilot, she became one through the love of flying, and through the spite of wanting to prove anyone wrong. Of course, she could become a pilot, watch her land a crashing plane.

Della had faced the great unknown, flown her way out of danger, and lived to see another day. Why wouldn't she be able to do anything she set her mind to. She was Della Duck. You'd be wrong to doubt her.

Adventure after adventure; danger after danger Della grew to become a confident, fearless, and one hell of an adventurous woman. She wanted to see it all just for the thrill of it.

When Scrooge and Della thought they had seen it all, they still wanted more. They wanted more than the world had to offer. When Della wanted to see the stars Scrooge encouraged her. His reckless niece deserved to see the stars, if she wanted to chart the stars and fly through space, well he knew he could and she deserved it.

The problem came when Della wanted to see the stars so soon to the hatching of her children. Every week since the day the eggs had been laid were filled Della slowly becoming more and more reckless. Every moment was filled with the thought of a new treasure to find, a new temple to explore, another flight to take.

He knew she always sought adventure, that that was what she wanted most in life. He had thought that it was the life she'd be able to put on hold, at least for a while, so long as they were young and in desperate need for their mother.

There were moments. There were moments where he believed she was ready for her next stage in life. Her, laughing merrily after scaring him in a brightly lit store by throwing a small, pastel pillow at his head, then leading him, grumbling, to a large frame perfect for holding her children safe. In a dark, narrow hallway of a set of ruins that Uncle Scrooge had taken them too, sharing with him the names she had thought of for her children.

When it came to planning for the babies, it had been Donald that did most of the work. As soon as he heard he was going to be an uncle, he had celebrated, that became fraught with planning for their arrival. List after list was created filled with every necessity needed for the babies. It had been Donald, who shopped for the necessities. Of course, Della had come, with the allowance from their Uncle to pay for everything, but when presented with various promos, cribs, and other supplies, she didn't think too much of it. She had dismissed the worries of her brother and simply laughed when he had to scrutinize everything for possible flaws.

From the beginning, Donald had been the one to worry about the arrival of the boys and had made sure they got everything they would need. He wanted to make sure they had the best. He wanted the ducklings to be safe, and for it to be easy for his sister to take care of them. There was some annoyance, sure, when he had been the one to purchase their first sets of clothing while she had traveled with their uncle to yet, another dilapidated structure in some foreign country, but he understood that she had the energy to burn. He felt for her, knowing that as a mother, she would have to give up the life she loved. It wasn't as if she was completely uninterested in her future offspring.

The thing is, Della always focused on the future. She never talked about how her life would be with her children early on, but she could spend hours talking about the future they'd have. Plans to take her children on adventures. Fantasizing how she'd have partnered to travel with her, work with her to achieve a goal. She could teach them to fly, to discover, to dream of seeing the world and making their own.

She had been growing restless the closer to the boy's hatching date came. Donald knew that she and Scrooge had been discussing the possible future adventure, of going beyond a simple flight across the globe, but to see the stars. It had been the way that they talked about it like it could happen anytime soon, that got him angry. The closer to the boys hatching, the angrier he had felt towards his sister. There were appointments to be made, final preparations to the home that had to be done for when the boys finally come. Della never stopped to care for that, imply planned with their Uncle to do more.

When he had overheard Scrooge and Della discussing the plans for space travel, discussing them in a way that made it seem like it could happen any day, he had gotten upset.

How could she even think about doing so dangerous, when her kids were on the way. Could she really just go off on some dangerous trip so soon? Were they even thinking of the possible consequences? Was she thinking at all?

Scrooge got upset that he would doubt them as if they would do anything that could be so dangerous they couldn't make their way out.

Della got angry that she was being questioned at all. She was Della Duck if she wanted to go to space she could. Did he think her blueprints were flawed? Did he think she couldn't do it? How could he accuse her of not thinking, of course, she was. She would never plan to just go off on some wild adventure she didn't plan to come back from.

When her Uncle showed her the soon-to-be-finished prototype of her creation, The Spear of Selene, she was overjoyed. She couldn't believe she had this power; she'd be able to give her boy's the stars.

It hadn't been a tough choice, to take the rocket on a test ride. She knew it wasn't ready for a complete travel, but a prototype couldn't be finished unless it was tested first. It would be quick. She'd be back in no time, and then Donald would have to see. She was more than capable. She'd be able to fly her ship and be back to see her boys born. She couldn't wait to rub it in his face that he worried for no reason, again.

It wasn't as if Scrooge had not encouraged her, to do what she did. He had backed her up when she came in after arguing with Donald. Of course, she was more than capable. His niece could pull anything off.

It had been Donald to worry about what could happen. The rocket to explode before it entered space, it could stop working once it was out there, she might not be able to return. She could fail to return safely, what if the rocket exploded on the way down? What if- What if- What if. Della and Scrooge had dismissed it, they were above consequences. They could face anything, they didn't need to worry beforehand, no matter what came at them, they'd make it out.

The cosmic storm was something none of them saw coming. An unpredictable event that destroyed their lives so quickly.

Scrooge blames the storm; if the air had been clear he'd have his niece.

Donald blames Scrooge; if he hadn't dangled a rocket in Della's face in a time she was so needing a chance to escape, he'd have his sister.

Donald knows that Della chose to risk testing the rocket, of course, he does. He knew more than anything that Della wanted more, that she has always wanted more. He knew that telling her to stop and think would only upset her, as he knew she'd take it as a challenge. No one told Della what to do if she had the opportunity she'd take it. It's something Donald knew. It was something Scrooge knew too. It's what he loved about her.

..

Donald was going to tell the boys, eventually, maybe. Every time he tried he'd be filled with a bitterness that clenched at his hands and throat, and a grief that burns at his eyes and sat heavy in his gut. He'd never be ready to share the negative feelings he felt towards his sister, their mother.

He never wanted them growing up hating their mother.

Of course, he knows, he could have at least shared something about their mom. He could have shared stories of the two of them growing up. Could have shared how she was always a prankster, always a dreamer, always looking for something to discover. He could have shared all the memories that pulled at his lips into a smile or made him laugh at her antics. He had loved his sister and the wait of her leaving laid heavy on him. He missed her, and sharing these stories could have alleviated some of the hurt he felt as well as the wonder the boy's had. He couldn't though.

He didn't want them growing up aspiring to be like her.

Dell was never satisfied with anything. She grew up with Scrooge encouraging her need for adventure, encouraging that she could do anything. Consequence was beneath her because she could face anything and make it out alive. He could tell stories all day of how lively his sister was, but he had feared so fiercely what could happen if the boys grew up with nothing but the admiration of their mother's adventurous spirit. How much danger they could get in if they lived so fearlessly. He couldn't stand the thought of losing the boys.

He raised them, and eventually, they had gone from being his nephews; his sister's kids, and the boy's to simply; his boys. He loved them more than anything in the world and he would stop at nothing to make sure that they were safe.

When they had come home, angry at the lies they'd been told, the information kept from them, and the people who kept them from the truth. He understood their anger at Scrooge, and even though Bleakley informed him their anger wasn't wholly justified, he couldn't ask them to not be angry. Scrooge would not take any blame for the incident, blaming it entirely on an unseen circumstance. He would never accept that his willingness to encourage Della into danger was wrong. Donald certainly couldn't fully forgive him when, despite everything that happened, he continued to put his family in harm's way. Why shouldn't he? He as Scrooge McDuck.

The boys were angry at Donald too. Their uncle could have said something, anything over their lives to absolve them of the wonder and worries they had about their mom. Donald understood, and accepted their anger. He could have easily said something, and if he had maybe this moment would be easier. The anger and negativity he had been avoiding for so long had finally been brought to life. It hurt, but he'd still do his best to make sure his boys were okay.

There were all angry that Della had disappeared into the stars, and Donald would have to reassure his kids that she hadn't traded them for the stars, but was trying to bring them back something to cherish.

He was Donald Duck, and he would do everything in his power to make sure the boys were safe and loved.


End file.
